When this game came out, I remember myself and many of my friends being so excited since we were finally getting some completely new IP. At that time in 2007 endless sequels, remakes, and remasters were already starting to become a thing - which, ironically, the Assassin's Creed series would also go on to do.

The gameplay is a little bit pared down compared to Assassin's Creed II, III, or Black Flag. Definitely a lot different compared to Origins, Odyssey, or Valhalla. This is more of a third person action adventure stealth 3D platformer focused on freerunning which is pretty awesome.

You play as a character named Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad (simply referred to as Altaïr throughout the game) during the Third Crusade (1189–1192 AD). You are a member of the Brotherhood of Assassins, which is idealistically opposed to the Templar Order, whom you will encounter many times throughout your journey. I don't want to spoil too much about the story, but I very much so enjoyed these historical segments of the game. It is also open world, which is great for freedom. This may be surprising to some who only thought the newer games were open world. At the time, I really enjoyed the graphics on the Xbox 360.

Now, technically you are simply re-experiencing this history during the present day by laying down in a device called the Animus and accessing your ancestor's memories through your DNA. Somewhat simplified, but you get the point. Your "real" present day character's name is Desmond Miles. I won't get into that part of the plot too much, as some people have been turned off by those segments of the game, especially in the newer games.

Being the first game in the series, it lacked some improvements and especially more variety in activities/quests that the newer Assassin's Creed games have. This is somewhat of a con, but again, at the time I didn't mind because this was a whole new universe for me to experience as it was fresh, new intellectual property. I did however enjoy completing some somewhat secret quests/challenges and unlocking new freerunning moves. This would allow you to access previously inaccessible locations to score some special loot. I loved this part!

If you want to play an action adventure game that's a little different and haven't tried any Assassin's Creed games yet, this will be fun for you to check out! If you are on limited time, many out there will make the argument that Assassin's Creed II, III, and Black Flag are better worth your time, but I still thought this game was great!